The Act Of Falling
by Clace-herondales
Summary: Clary Morgenstern's life is completely controlled by her father, but when a certain golden boy comes along she finally gains the courage to go against her father's wishes of an arranged marriage, and fall in love with the boy he loathes. Clace Au
1. Chapter1

**_Hi all, this story was published a while ago on another account of mine but I lost the password so decided to republish the same story on my new account. There will be mistakes within this story as no one is perfect and updates may not be too regular as I'm very busy with school. Anyway, I fancied writing this for a bit of fun so I hope you enjoy!_**

**_I DO NOT OWN MOST OF THE CHARACTERS WITHIN THIS STORY, THEY BELONG TO CASSANDRA CLARE. I DO HOWEVER OWN THIS STORY._**

**_WARNING: THIS STORY MAY CONTAIN SCENES THAT SOME READERS MAY FIND DISTURBING. WARNINGS WILL BE PLACED AT THE START OF EACH CHAPTER._**

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**_Chapter 1_**

**_All she sees is gold_**

Sebastian Verlac: the 'perfect man'. Perfectly straight silver hair, a perfectly charming smile; dark, mysterious eyes, a perfectly sculpted and angelic face… and that is without his deceivingly kind personality or his status as a rich and well respected gentleman.

Clarissa Morgenstern had been given all of these details and more ever since it had been announced that she was to be married to this stranger. And even though she had never met him before, she already knew that she despised him and the situation that they had been put in.

But as she sat by his side, stiff as a board as his hand travelled dangerously high up her thigh, she put on a fake, cheery smile (exactly as she'd been taught) and allowed her father to converse with her 'fiance' about his plans for their marriage. And in that moment she wanted nothing more than for the ground to open up and swallow her whole.

"That settles it then! You and the Princess are to be married in early July!" Valentine exclaimed, gesturing Maia to come over and fill each of their glasses with a bottle of his finest champagne.

Her father had always had control over her, especially since her mother had left them. Every single time she had tried to fight back she'd receive a punishment, and now it had gotten to the point where she could no longer fight back at all. The King got what the King wanted. And right now… he wanted another heir.

Maia finished pouring out the drinks and immediately backed away, curtsying to Valentine and quickly scuttling out of the room.

Sebastian smiled wickedly to himself as he watched the servant with power hungry eyes, and then he turned to Clary and raised his glass. "To my future wife," his eyes darkened with lust as that 'perfect' smile spread across his perfect face, sickening her.

Clary kept her emerald eyes on the floor as Sebastian and Valentine continued to discuss their future plans with excitement, Sebastian's wandering hand causing her to jump from time to time.

Thankfully, a loud knock at the door interrupted Sebastian and Valentine's sickening conversation and to her surprise, her brother entered. Jonathan had a proud smirk on his face along with splatters of blood and an ugly, purple bruise directly under his left eye.

"I found it father!" Jonathan called and Clary thought for a moment that he was about to present some sort of creature that he'd killed; but as he stepped away from the door, he revealed a young boy of about Clary's age.

He was injured; blood soaking his untucked, white shirt and bruises covering his face, yet he was breathtakingly handsome. His golden eyes were blazing with determination and hatred, his golden curls- which were matted with mud -fell perfectly against his honey skin. He was all gold, and the most beautiful boy Clary had ever seen.

"Young Jonathan, what perfect timing!" Valentine jumped from his seat, sauntering over to the boy and taking his chin between his fingers, examining him as though he were an animal for sale at the market. However, this act seemed to increase the boy's anger as he emitted a low growl, his amber eyes darkening dangerously.

"It's Jace," he growled, and in that moment he reminded Clary of a lion: a lion readying to pounce on its prey, "And I do not answer to you. Valentine Morgenstern." Clary shivered at the loathing in his voice as he spat her father's name, speaking to him in a way she had never heard anyone speak to him before; speaking in a tone she had longed to use for many years now.

"I always knew you Herondales were pathetic, that's why you're here in fact. Your scumbag of a father got everything and was a ridiculous excuse of a human!" Clary saw Jace flinch slightly, but he quickly regained his proud posture, "So, im here to help you Herondale. You will obey me and become a better man for it." Valentine said calmly. But a crooked smile spread across Jace's face as he chuckled under his breath. Bad move.

Valentine grabbed Jace by his suspenders, pulling him so that their eyes were staring into one another's: light versus dark. And then Jace whispered something into his ear and Clary could see that he was just asking… no, begging for a fight. Clary watched as Valentine's eyes blazed with a terrifying anger and all of a sudden Jace was on the floor, Valentine's heavy boot weighing down on his wrist.

"Do what you want to me, you will never change who I am." Jace said stubbornly, his face serious and determined even as Valentine let out a maniacal laugh.

"I shall have great fun with you, Herondale. Your father died way too quickly for my liking, and your darling mother… poor Celine…" Valentine trailed off, his black eyes bearing into Jace's golden ones.

Clary was frozen in her chair, she wanted to help this stranger, to protect this boy that she had never met from her own father. She may not have known him, but there was something about him that felt so… vulnerable. She felt an unconscious need to keep him safe.

She was finally broken from her thoughts by a pained cry and saw that her father had snapped Jace's left wrist and was now moving onto his right, and that is when she finally managed to break through the fear that had been building up inside of her all of these years, "Leave him alone!" she screamed, catching the attention of everyone in the room. Especially Jace.

His golden eyes were bearing into hers, pleading with her to stop, and she realised that he was trying to protect her… but she didn't need protection, not anymore. "Don't you think you've done enough? Just leave him." she said, a little quieter than before, suddenly feeling a lot less courageous as her father's eyes landed on her.

"Clary! He's the enemy, he deserves this!" Jonathan said, a sick smile spread across his face as he watched Jace writhe around in pain on the floor. "We brought him here for you. He's your new servant, unless you don't want him?" Jonathan questioned but Clary ignored him, her eyes were stuck on the gorgeous boy on the ground.

"No, I want him. I need a new servant, and he looks handy."

"I often get told I'm good with my hands," Jace piped up, winking at Clary as he cradled his wrist. "Your father may have damaged that though, but I'm good in other sectors too." He said with a crooked smile and Clary couldn't tell if he was joking or being completely serious, his face seemed to constantly hold the same amused expression.

"She is to be married, you will not make my daughter out to be a whore!" Valentine slapped him once more and then pulled him up to his feet, "Do with him as you please Clarissa, but do not damage the Morgenstern name."

And with that Sebastian stood up, pulling clary up with him. He moved over to Jace and guided him out the door and down the corridors of the castle. And despite everything that was looming over her, all she could see was gold.

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I hope this was somewhat readable and that you enjoyed it! Thanks for reading, feel free to leave a review (but please don't be too harsh). An update should be coming soon.

**

**_Thank you!_**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi all, I'm so sorry I haven't updated this story for so long. I have just been feeling so uninspired and I've had so much work piled on me that its just been so hard to write anything. I hope everyone is doing good, what with all the craziness that is going on in the world at the moment! **

**Anyway, I'm back and updates should be coming more regularly now as I have a bit more free time. Also, thank you so much to all of the people who have left reviews and actually taken the time to give my story a chance, it means so much to me!**

**I hope you enjoy x**

**Chapter 2**

**Be yourself**

The mountains surrounding the town of Idris were covered in thick blankets of snow as winter rolled in. The low winter sun peaking through the gaps between the hills, streaming down over the town and providing the villagers with the slightest bit of warmth.

Clary wrapped her cloak further around herself, pushing strands of her fiery hair behind her ears as her horse trotted onwards towards the castle. She loved riding her horse into the depths of the small town, supporting villagers and helping a few of them out with the chores she was unable to do at the castle. She loved the freedom of being able to buy and do whatever she wished, but no matter where she tried to hide within the city, the castle was always there, looming over and blocking out whatever sunlight was entering the town.

Her father had strict rules that had to be followed, and the most important one's were to be home before dark and to never,under no circumstances, ever leave the city walls. She was respectful of these wishes because she'd heard the stories from the outside world. She had heard of the creatures that lurked outside: the creatures that lurked in the dark, the ones that had taken her mother when she and Jonathan were just children. And quite frankly she didn't want to die just yet.

Her horse halted as they finally reached the gates to the castle and Clary dismounted, landing smoothly on the gravel beneath her. She pulled the hood of her emerald cloak down, revealing her face so that the guards would allow her entry as she handed her horse over to the stableboy, Alec.

The ginormous steel gates were heaved open by two of Valentine's slaves and she entered the grounds, deciding to go for a stroll through the gardens rather than having to face her father any sooner.

"Oi!" a males voice came out of the darkness so she quickly put her hand around the knife hidden against her thigh, readying herself to attack if necessary, but as she looked around for the source of the mysterious male's voice, she saw a flash of gold and the knife was tugged out of her hand as she tripped, falling to the ground. She was about to call for help but the culprit quickly appeared.

There he stood… the golden boy. A smug grin spread across his face as he ran a finger along her blade. "I don't believe we have been properly introduced, princess," his smirk caused an old cut to reopen on his lip causing blood to dribble out of it as he held out his hand out, "Jace."

She looked at his hand and then into his golden eyes before pulling herself up from the ground and brushing herself off. "No need to be rude, princess. It's only fair that you introduce yourself."

"My father doesn't like me speaking to slaves," she turned on her heel, blushing as Jace stared at her, his eyes bearing into her as though he was examining her… trying to get into the depths of her mind. "I'd better get going."

"Do you always obey your father's rules? Why don't you try and live a little, be yourself. I thought you were like that, you know after you shouted at him the other night."

Jace chuckled to himself, watching as she walked away from him slowly and then suddenly stopped. She turned back around, looking at him thoughtfully.

"Clary," she said, holding her hand out, causing him to hesitate before shaking it. She couldn't help but notice that his hands were rough, skin peeling of them and dirt buried under his nails, "it's nice to meet you."

"You too, Clary." Jace said, looking into her eyes as he continued to hold her hand.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hi, so I know I only just posted a chapter, but it was pretty short so I figured I should probably post another one. I hope you are all doing well and that this chapter might cheer you up a little bit even though I know that's pretty hard at a time like this. **

**Anyway, enjoy Clace getting to know each other! x**

**Chapter 3**

**The Garden**

The air grew bitter as darkness fell upon Idris, the wind reddening her freckled cheeks as her horse charged forward, uncontrollable laughter escaping her lips as she gripped onto the boy in front of her. Clary still wasn't exactly sure how she had ended up in this position, but one thing she did know is that her father was going to kill her… but somehow she didn't care.

"You're crazy! My father will have our head for this!" Clary shouted, battling to be heard over the whistling wind. She knew however that Jace had heard her perfectly as she watched his usual cocky smirk form.

"Your father and I still have business to carry out, he could kill me but he won't. You on the other hand…" he teased, turning his head in time to see fear spread across Clary's face. "I'm joking princess, don't worry. I'll protect you from your father." Clary rolled her eyes.

"Where the hell are you even taking me anyway? You aren't a murderer are you?" Clary questioned, genuinely concerned and quickly regretting her decision to get onto a horse with a mysterious boy and riding off into the night with him like she was in some sort of fairytale. "I don't know anything about you, you could be a psychopath for all I know."

"You've already got enough of those in your life," he replied, slowing the horse down as they entered the forest that surrounded the outskirts of Idris. "Also, we're just heading to my favourite spot from when I was a kid, there is no need to stress it is all perfectly safe."

Clary stayed silent after that, her eyes curiously examining the unfamiliar surroundings as the horse trotted on.

She had never been allowed into the forest, but her brother and father had often gone hunting here when she was younger and Jonathan had always told her stories of the various types of animals he'd come across and the sound of the birds flying from tree to tree or singing cheerful songs.

Right now though, in the darkness there were no birds singing, and the only sound was that of twigs snapping under the horse's feet. Clary felt so alone, despite being in the presence of Jace, but her loneliness was far from a negative feeling, in fact she felt the most at peace she ever had in her entire life.

There was no one watching her; no one judging her, no one telling her how she ought to behave or dress. She was finally free from the grip of her status, she was finally free to be herself, and with that thought she let out a cheerful scream, not caring how crazy Jace might have thought she was.

She was expecting Jace to make one of his sarcastic comments, telling her she'd gone crazy and that she needed help or something of that nature, but to her surprise he just started to chuckle at her sudden excitement.

"I'm going to guess that this is your first time here?" Jace asked with an amused tone as Clary continued to giggle to herself. "Here you're just Clary, not Princess Clarissa. And I am just Jace, not the servant boy. Here we're equal Clary." Jace said as he halted the horse at an opening.

He jumped down from the horse, brushing himself off before offering Clary a hand. She landed next to him and watched as he tied the horse to a tree, stroking its head before pulling a small rock from his pocket. As soon as his hand touched it it lit up providing them with some light within a sea of darkness.

"What is that?" She furrowed her eyebrows as she looked down at the illuminated stone that Jace gripped so tightly in his hand.

"You're not serious are you?" she nodded her head, staring at the small rock with enough confusion that he knew she was genuinely confused by the object in his hand. "It's a witchlight! I thought this was part of basic shadowhunter knowledge, surely your father showed you it when you were training?" She stared at him for a moment.

"Are you crazy? I never trained, Jonathan used to train with my father whilst I did lessons with my mother. Well that's how it was until she was murdered, after that my father taught me some defence but that's all. Girls don't train as shadowhunters."

"And I'm the crazy one? Jesus Clary, both men and women can be shadowhunters, the angel provided both males and females with his blood, as far as I'm concerned there's no difference between female and male fighters. What else does he tell you you can't do?" Jace questioned but Clary's face dropped and she just looked at the ground.

"It doesn't matter, let's just go to this 'amazing place from your childhood' that you have dragged me to."Clary said and Jace nodded, holding out his free hand for her and taking her through the opening.

"Here it is," Jace said with a slightly sad smile as he scanned what seemed to be a garden. In the centre there was a small pond filled with lily pads, and three tree stumps stood beside it, words carved into the wood. Clary let go of Jace's hand, wandering over to the stumps and running her soft fingers over the words carved into the stumps.

"I'm guessing Celine and Stephen are your mother and father?" Clary asked as she read the names that had been carved in the wood. Jace nodded. "Do you mind me asking where they are?"

"My Mother killed herself when I was younger, I carved her name into that the night before I found her. She always brought me here so we could be whoever we wanted. I used to make up characters in my head and pretend to be them, she'd be forced to go along with it of course." Jace chuckled sadly, "My father was murdered last year."

"I'm so sorry Jace."

"I hated him." Clary was taken aback by his reply. "Should we stop talking about our dead parents now?" He questioned, sitting on the stump in which his name was carved into and pulling out a pocket knife, scraping away at his father's name.

"So, what's up with this whole marriage thing I've been hearing about? You seriously want to be stuck with Verlac your whole life?" He raised an eyebrow at her, tapping the stump beside him and gesturing her to sit down.

"My father wants an heir, he doesn't believe Jonathan is powerful enough so his plan is for me to produce him the perfect child." Clary sighed, frowning as she thought about being forced to spend the rest of her life with the perfect bastard that was Sebastian Verlac.

"Run, that's my advice." Jace said as he spun the pocket knife around in his hand. Clary chuckled. "You're too young to have a child, it'll ruin your life. And believe me I know all about that slimy piece of shit and you do not want to be married to him, or have his children."

"I know all of this Jace, but where the hell am I supposed to run? My father constantly has eyes on me, he'd just come and find me."

"Then we'll run together." He suggested and Clary's eyes widened. She barely knew this boy, she couldn't trust him. Not yet. "I can't stand being under your father's control a second longer and I know you can't either, we'll do what we did tonight. All we need is one horse and a few supplies, I know my way out of the city, I could easily get us out."

"It would never work, I'm going to be punished after tonight and I won't be allowed out for god knows how long. Also, he would just hunt us down." Jace shrugged, placing the knife back into his pocket. "I think we should head home before my father sends out a search party. Thanks for bringing me here Jace." Clary said, planting a kiss on Jace's cheek as he stood up. He instantly bowed his head and quickly went to untie the horse before she could see his flushed cheeks.

The ride back to the castle was filled with laughter and smiles as Clary and Jace shared some of the more lighthearted facts about themselves with one another, but the smiles quickly disappeared when they arrived at the castle gates to find an extremely angry Valentine, accompanied with an equally furious Sebastian Verlac.

**Hope you guys enjoyed, feel free to leave a review and let me know what you think :)**


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